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Red Shirt Comics (Port Jefferson) – best for gaming, ‘no judgements’
For Joshua Darbee, owning Red Shirt Comics is a dream come true.
“If you had asked me at 16 what I wanted to do, I would have said open a comic book store,” Darbee said.
He started reading classic Archie and Richie Rich comics when he was a kid and has been enthralled with the medium ever since. “They were all my sisters comics and there was one Spiderman in there,” he said. “And I was just kind of hooked, that was it.”
The Port Jefferson shop opened on FCBD in 2017. While many shops limit the number of titles guests can take home on FCBD, Darbee allows his customers to snag 10 of the event’s freebees.
Darbee said the pandemic was a major challenge, but one that he got through thanks to a wedding support for mom-and-pop shops.
“Thankfully I had a lot of customers that legit just wanted to support the store,” he said. “There were a lot of people — all over the country — that were just going out of their way to support small business. I had put up a webstore briefly and I was getting orders from all over the country. They could get it cheaper on Amazon but they still wanted to support local business.”
Red Shirt is in the most walkable area of all the shops on this list. Ready for families with young children who might pop in, the shop has a designated kids section, which among stories and games, has a kit for kids to make there own comics.
Before the pandemic ceased gatherings, Darbee hosted a book club where he and customers would talk about comics they read each week. Red Shirt was also a hub for another group of fantasy fans, is it is licensed by the Wizard’s Play Network (WPN).
“I try to keep it a safe haven for people so they can enjoy their hobbies, no judgement,” Darbee said. “Up until the pandemic there was always D&D going on or gaming going on. There was always activities going on in the store. I wanted it to be a lively place where people could feel comfortable. I just wanted to engage with people and be a part of the community.”
